The former owner of the LA Dodgers is organizing the bid in consultation with the investment bank Guggenheim Securities and ‘with the goal of placing people and data empowerment at the center of the platform’s design and purpose’
Billionaire businessman and property tycoon Frank McCourt has announced that he’s assembling a consortium to buy TikTok’s US operations.
He’s joining the list of investors hoping to capitalise on a new federal law that mandates TikTok’s China-based parent company to sell the popular platform or face prohibition. McCourt is organizing the bid in consultation with the investment bank Guggenheim Securities and “with the goal of placing people and data empowerment at the center of the platform’s design and purpose,” according to an announcement on the website of his Project Liberty initiative.
Should a sale take place, the ex-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers said he would intend to restructure TikTok and grant more control to individuals “over their digital identities and data” by transitioning the platform to an open-source protocol that allows for greater transparency. While McCourt himself doesn’t use TikTok, his businesses and internet-focused initiative do.
The bid is a continuation of his long-standing interest in reshaping the internet with improved data privacy protections, a mission he’s pursued through Project Liberty. He founded the project “to build a new digital civic architecture for a safer, healthier internet,” according to the organization’s website.
The ambition of overhauling TikTok has garnered support from influential social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, whose recent publication “The Anxious Generation” delves into the impact of smartphones and social media on the mental health crisis among the younger generation.
“We thought this was a really fantastic opportunity to accelerate the creation of an alternative internet,” McCourt said. Notable investors like former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have shown interest in acquiring TikTok. However, parent firm ByteDance has clarified it isn’t planning to offload the platform.
Industry experts have also suggested the Chinese government aren’t likely to greenlight any sale, particularly one involving the recommendation engine that curates user feeds with videos. McCourt voiced his disinterest in TikTok’s current algorithm. He believes “top-down” recommendation engines don’t align with his vision on how such platforms ought to be run.
He also reckons ByteDance will consider selling its US branch of TikTok at some stage. As of now, the company has been pushing back against legislation passed in the last month that could hinder one of its most profitable markets.
ByteDance and TikTok moved to challenge the US government in court last week to prevent the law from taking effect. On Tuesday, eight TikTok creators lodged their own protest, arguing that the law infringes upon their First Amendment rights to free speech.
The firm has also been embroiled in a legal tussle in Montana, aiming to thwart a state law that would ban the video-sharing platform. On Tuesday, TikTok, Montana users and the state of Montana agreed to pause a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Montana’s pioneering ban while the federal lawsuits are resolved.
Montana’s law, which was temporarily halted before it could come into effect on 1st January, would be nullified if a company not based in a country labelled as a foreign adversary acquires TikTok. McCourt boasts a net worth of $1.4billion (£1.1bn), according to Forbes. He sold the Dodgers for $2billion (£1.6bn) in 2012 to Guggenheim Baseball Management and in 2016, he purchased the French football club Marseille.
